News reports about dangerous drugs are becoming more and more common. Within the last couple of years, we have seen the manufacturers of Vioxx, Bextra and Celebrex – pain medications known to cause severe cardiac injury – settle with injured Americans. It seems that almost each month now, we hear about another dangerous drug that has been linked to a serious side effect. The FDA continues to require manufacturers to place clear warnings on these dangerous drugs and sometimes, the manufacturer is required to recall the dangerous drug completely.

Just this week, another dangerous drug manufacturer was reprimanded. AstraZeneca, the maker of Seroquel, finalized its agreement to pay $520 million for its wrongdoing. Seroquel is a drug approved by the FDA for treatment of schizophrenia. Despite this limited approval by the FDA, AstraZeneca aggressively marketed the schizophrenia drug for unapproved uses. The drug was promoted to patients suffering from Alzheimer’s, dementia, anxiety, autism, compulsive disorders, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Individuals suffering from Alzheimer’s, dementia, anxiety, autism, compulsive disorders, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder fell victim to these misleading advertisements and were prescribed Seroquel by physicians who were also misled. The patients then unknowingly submitted false claims for payment to many government healthcare programs. These false claims to pay led the U.S. government to accuse AstraZeneca of the false and misleading advertising campaign.

In addition, AstraZeneca was accused of utilizing groups of doctors to help promote the dangerous drug, Seroquel, for AstraZeneca’s benefit. The manufacturer paid doctors to sign off on articles it wrote about Seroquel. AstraZeneca also paid the travel costs of these doctors who consulted about the off-label (unapproved) use of the drug. For the above actions, the U.S. government charged AstraZeneca with violating anti-kickback laws.

The above violations and citations are significant because Seroquel has been linked to very serious side effects. Thousands of Seroquel users have suffered from diabetes, pancreatitis and death as a result of the dangerous drug. Had only those affected by schizophrenia utilized the dangerous drug Seroquel, far fewer people would have been at risk to suffer from the serious and life threatening side effects. But because Seroquel was prescribed off-label to so many other patients, the incidence of these side effects is much more widespread.

Proponents of the Seroquel personal injury lawsuits argue that there existed other medications that were safer for those suffering from the above conditions. AstraZeneca knew that the dangerous drug Seroquel was not FDA approved for the off-label uses but it promoted it for those purposes anyway to make money. Had the public been properly warned – both that Seroquel was only approved for schizophrenia treatment and that regardless of the underlying medical condition, Seroquel carried serious side effects – perhaps Seroquel users would have made different choices.

We continue to learn that drug manufacturers are cutting corners in researching and testing their drugs. This is leading to more and more dangerous drugs being placed on the market. We find this unacceptable. As a Missouri personal injury firm, we believe that the drug manufacturers have a duty to thoroughly research and test their drugs before selling them. We further believe that the public should be fully informed of all potential risks, side effects, benefits, and proper uses of medications. That way, an individual can make an educated decision as to whether or not he or she should ingest the medication.

If you or a loved one has been injured due by a dangerous drug, you need a St. Louis personal injury attorney. For a free consultation, please call Lindsay Rakers at 800.517.0602 or visit us at www.injurylawmissouri.com. We only get paid if we obtain a settlement or verdict for you.